Everyday Superheroes of TaskRabbit

We say TaskRabbit’s mission is to make everyday life easier for everyday people — whether that’s taking the stress out of a big move or helping elderly clients continue to live independently. In particular, Taskers have often helped save the day for a certain group of everyday superheroes: moms.

We asked three mothers (clients and Taskers alike) about the role TaskRabbit has played in their lives, from keeping important promises, to saving them in “dropped the ball” moments, to helping them balance their work and personal lives.

When Leigh-Anne promised her daughter, Campbell, an ice skating party for her 11th birthday, she didn’t realize the lengths she’d have to go to in order to keep that promise.

This wasn’t just any birthday party. 2014 was Campbell’s first birthday after her parents’ recent divorce, and it was paramount to Leigh-Anne that she make it a memorable one. “I wanted to make sure that she knew I was never going to break my pattern of being there for her,” Leigh-Anne says. “And I shot my mouth off. What if I couldn’t execute on that?”

Leigh-Anne learned that Campbell’s favorite ice rink only opened party reservations one day a year, and they had to be made in person. People were notorious for camping out overnight to get a place in line. Meanwhile, Leigh-Anne was working long days in Washington, D.C. “It was one of those nightmares for working moms, when there’s a limited window for you to get something and you have to do it in person, but you can’t get away.”

Luckily, Leigh-Anne found a Tasker to help wait in line at the rink on the appointed day. Her Tasker arrived before 6am and kept Leigh-Anne updated throughout the three-hour wait. “That was so special because she knew how much this meant to my daughter, and she knew how worried I was because I was without any means of executing her request,” Leigh-Anne remembers.

When the Tasker called with news that she got the reservation, Leigh-Anne took a moment to duck under her desk at work to celebrate. The birthday party went off without a hitch, and to this day, Campbell never knew about the moments of worry leading up to her special day.

“The whole thing was save-the-day,” Leigh-Anne says. “You never want to fail your family. At that crucial time when my daughter needed me to be dependable and reliable, there’s no way I could’ve pulled it off without TaskRabbit.”

For Lauren, one of the greatest rewards of being a Tasker is the freedom it gives her as a single mother to nurture her relationship with her kids.

“Being a mom, to me, is being able to meet my kids’ needs, and enjoy them at their current ages,” Lauren says. “They grow up too quickly, and I’ve missed out on a lot of their childhood, due to jobs that overworked and underpaid me, and left me feeling drained and grumpy when I did have ‘free’ time.”

Thanks to her flexible schedule and the extra income — a meaningful boost for her single-income household — Lauren has not only been able to enroll her kids in sports and Scouts, but can be present with them at all these activities as well.

Her kids are particularly proud of her career as a minor home repairs Tasker. Through her strength, creativity, and independence, she’s shown them that women can do any job they set their sights on.

“This is a TaskRabbit day.” | Tiffany D., New York City

If anyone’s a proponent of “doing it all,” you would think it’s Tiffany, a nationally recognized entrepreneur, author, speaker, and mother. But Tiffany points out that she’s done the exact opposite to get to where she is today. For her, balancing her professional, intellectual, and family pursuits means leaning on her community for help and resources — including Taskers. “This is a TaskRabbit day,” she’ll tell herself when she needs an extra set of hands.

“I use TaskRabbit to clone myself when I’m in a pinch, usually when I can’t do something or be somewhere,” Tiffany explains. Earlier this year, a “TaskRabbit day” meant hiring a Tasker to help pick up a white button-down shirt for her son’s band recital after he informed her the morning of the performance that he had a dress code. The Tasker purchased a shirt, ironed it, and delivered it to school so that Tiffany’s son was dressed and ready when Tiffany arrived for the recital after a day of back-to-back meetings.

On another occasion, Tiffany’s work obligations prevented her from accompanying her visiting in-laws to a Broadway show. “They’re elderly, and I needed them to be accompanied by someone gracious and patient,” she says. She hired a Tasker who went with her in-laws to the show and made them feel right at home.

“TaskRabbit helps me be able to have a career, a healthy partnership, and a way to be a conscious global citizen,” Tiffany says. “I don’t need to do it all in order to have it all.”

Read more 10th anniversary stories here and join us in building the future of TaskRabbit!